Kaizer Chiefs’ Siyethemba Sithebe practices a passing drill at Naturena. Image: @KaizerChiefs / Twitter
Kaizer Chiefs: Zwane addresses Sithebe, 6 and 8 roles
Kaizer Chiefs’ Siyethemba Sithebe is yet to show the signs of the dominant midfielder required at the club. Arthur Zwane has shared his views.
Kaizer Chiefs’ Siyethemba Sithebe practices a passing drill at Naturena. Image: @KaizerChiefs / Twitter
Playing for Kaizer Chiefs in midfield, especially at this moment in the club’s history, demands a player with an ex-factor and complete dominance in the center.
Siyethemba Sithebe is yet to show that quality.
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SIYETHEMBA SITHEBE JOINS KAIZER CHIEFS
As The South African reported last season, the 29-year-old Sithebe from Newcastle KwaZulu Natal left AmaZulu’s management in fury. He declined a new deal before signing a pre-contract with the Glamour Boys.
The versatile midfielder was then frozen out for five months before officially making his move to Naturena in July.
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SLOW START. WHERE’S THE ISSUE?
Fast forward to September and he has played seven games but is yet to truly dominate opposition as an Amakhosi midfielder is expected.
Perhaps playing for a bigger brand, Sithebe has been placed in a different position from the number eight and 10 roles he enjoyed at AmaZulu.
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Asked if the player has been afraid or unable to express himself in his new roles as an eight or in a double six, Zwane said they all just require some time.
“Not really, players will always use their own discretion. We allow them to do that, because the game is the teacher,” Zwane said via Soccer Laduma.
“We’ll get better with time, Yusuf [Maart] came back, George [Matlou] and Sithebe last week [against Stellenbosch]. We played Sithebe as one of the two sixes and we said go a little bit higher, play as an eight.
“Because we’ve got Yusuf, but I think he was coming too deep, we had to keep reminding him, you know, to say stay [up there] with George.
“Once we’ve managed to come out of their first line of confrontation, then we know we already have numbers.
“At some point we did it very well but again poor decision-making. But I believe we (are) going improve on that with time,” Zwane added.
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